What Time is Left
by Shelomith
Summary: The final installment of my trilogy, the continuation of "Hylian Twilight" and "Chasing after the Wind." Won't give away any plot details, but I can say that it all ends in this story. Info available to find other two stories in prologue
1. Prologue

Dear readers, this is the third and final installment of my trilogy chronicling the story of Ketura Lykos, her husband Nathan, their daughter Catherine, their unborn baby, and Ketura's best friend Ganondorf. Thank you for taking time out of your lives to read my stories, and I promise that I won't waste your time with another Zelda fanfic for a long while (I'm trying my hand at Avatar next). Reviews really make my day, because I like to know that people have opinions. So please, submit one. Even if you think this is the worst story you have ever read and it sucked thoroughly in your opinion, I still want to hear about it.

If you're new to this world, and you've heard many a wonderful things about my stories, but not bothered to read any of them, then I shall supply you with the info necessary to find them. In the past, I have tried to provide a link to a previous story, but those plans fell through dramatically. So I'll just give you the info needed to narrow down search results.

_Hylian Twilight_ - Language: English - Rated K+ - Genre: Adventure and Friendship (either works) - Characters: Link and Ganondorf - Status: Complete

_Chasing After the Wind_ - Language: English - Rated T - Genre: Drama and Adventure (again, either is good) - Characters: Link and Ganondorf (I lament the lack of OC option) - Status: Complete

I'm sorry about this super long intro because you're dying to get on with the story. HOWEVER, there is one last thing I must say before I shut up and tell the story. If you have not played "The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass" I recommend you get your butt to your local game store and pick up a copy so you can play it. That way, you will hopefully understand the story a little better.

So now, I shall tell the story. Sit back, relax, and enjoy _What Time is Left._

**PROLOGUE**

_**Where does the killing begin?**_

Bellum was proud of his decision to leave this portion of the ocean and spend seven years scouring the rest of it for other signs of human life. He found five great civilizations out there: the Cobble Kingdom being the nearest, and the Mohenjo nation was a little farther north. Above the seas that had submerged Holodrum and Labrynna were large continents that still carried these countries. Finally, there was the land of Daro far to the south of the Cobble Kingdom. On his path to destroy all humanity, he would focus on obliterating the larger civilizations first, then focusing on the smaller villages on isolated islands. This would be efficient, for there were small colonies of the Cobble Kingdom that would not take long at all to die off once the mother country was down.

He had used his knowledge of the substance life force to form a large army of phantom knights bred for the purpose of killing any human they were told to kill. He had been able to combine life force with a portion of the pure metal Azurine to create a large monster that served the purpose of draining life force from the most spirited of people.

Regret had sunk in, now that he had the source of some of the most vigorous life force done away with: Ketura Lykos, but if she had lived, that could have eventually led to his destruction. However, the sword that she had forged from the pure metals still existed, but would anyone ever find him again until he came to kill them?

Like it mattered now. He was on his way to Holodrum and Labrynna when he met a man garbed entirely in red who was rowing himself in a small boat. He lowered anchor and invited the man to come aboard briefly with him, at first plotting to kill him.

--

"So, what is your name?" asked Bellum cordially as he offered the man a seat in the main area of the lower deck.

"I go by . . . the Red Lion," said the red-garbed man, hesitating to think of a name for himself.

"That is an interesting mark on your hand there . . . the Triforce Crest? Do you hold a piece of the Triforce?" Bellum observed, pointing at the Red Lion's right hand.

"Why, yes it is," confirmed Leo, holding up his right hand so he can look at the crest. "It is half of the Triforce of Wisdom."

"I was just wondering, Mr. Red Lion, if you could help me with something," began Bellum, sitting in the chair across from his guest. "I have this adversary who goes by the name of Ganondorf. He has the Triforce of Power, and I want to find a way to kill him that doesn't involve the Master Sword. Do you have any ideas?"

"Ganondorf," the Red Lion muttered before thinking for a moment. Then, he held out his hand, palm facing up, and a small triangular rock materialized onto his palm. The rock was the color of obsidian, with fine gold lines running across it. "This should do the job. This stone is formed by the physical manifestation of the power of a little-known god, whose name is no longer remembered by man. The hilt of the Master Sword was created out of such a material, and this will slay the holder of the Triforce of Power and keep them from being brought back to life as long as it remains in the body."

"Interesting," said Bellum as he took the stone and looked it over. "What has Ganondorf ever done to you, to warrant you aiding me so easily?"

"He destroyed my home," said the Red Lion. "Thank you for the rest, but I must be on my way now."

"Thank you for the tool," said Bellum. _Just what is this made of? I should make more._


	2. One

**ONE**

"It's a boy!"

Ketura leaned her sweat-drenched head into her stack of feather pillows, breathing heavily while recovering from the work of delivering a baby. She heard her husband Nathan's cry of "It's a boy!" and smiled faintly. "A boy," she panted quietly.

Nathan came around to her side, holding the baby, who was wrapped up in a couple of blankets. Red hair stuck out from underneath, which clashed with his rosy pink skin.

"What should we name him?" asked Nathan as he handed his wife the baby.

"How about Remus? It was Dad's middle name," suggested Ketura, feeling a little sad at the memory of her recently deceased father.

"All right, then. Remus it is."

--

Nine months ago, the Lykos family - Ketura, Nathan, and their daughter Catherine - had come to live on this island that held a small fishing village to hide from Bellum, a mad scientist threatening to kill all of mankind. This village used to be known as Ordon back in the days of Old Hyrule, but the villagers had renamed their home Outset to reflect the new beginning that the ocean induced for everyone. The Lykos family was taken in by a woman named Beth who knew Ketura's father, Link, back from their childhood ("I even had a small crush on him," Beth admitted.)

Link was seriously injured in a battle with several of Bellum's phantom knights, and was on the way to recuperation when he was murdered in his bed by Ganondorf, whom Ketura counted as a friend. Ganondorf believed that the elimination of Ketura's family would result in her wanting to be with him, who had recently fallen in love with her. It was hard for Ketura to forgive him, and even harder to leave him; who knew the next time the two would meet?

--

The family lived together in one room of Beth's house, which was made up of a closet, three beds, a couple of shelves along the wall, and a rocking chair. Being forced to leave their home suddenly meant that they had no time to take many possessions with them. On this particular June day, three weeks after Remus was born, Nathan was out working his job as an art teacher at the local school, Catherine was at the school, and Ketura was at home with Remus and Beth. Beth was telling stories of the things Link had done when he was younger.

"He even shot a pumpkin off of Talo's head!" she said, wrapping up a story about Link after he bought a slingshot.

"Interesting," said Ketura. "How did he get along with my mom back when they were kids?"

"Link and Ilia? Oh, they were the best of friends. Every adult expected them to get married when they were older - but they married YOUNG, seriously. Did you know that?"

"They got married because my mother was pregnant with me," Ketura informed Beth.

"I know. Everyone knew, and everyone was outraged."

Suddenly, Remus started crying.

"I swear, he's cried more in his first three weeks than Catherine did in her entire first year," remarked Ketura as she decided to breastfeed the baby. "Perhaps because compared to his sister, he's spoiled. Catherine was born on an uninhabited island in the middle of a violent storm and her first set of clothing was made out of a sail. I really hope to do things right with Remus: both parents, a stable home environment, no worry about a mad scientist bent on murdering everyone."

"I don't think he would come here, dear," said Beth; she and the rest of the island had been informed about Bellum, but once the initial shock and panic had died down, nobody on Outset seemed too concerned.

"You never know," said Ketura, brushing a strand of bright red hair out of her face. I sincerely hope he chooses not to." _I don't need him to know that I'm alive._

--

Ketura had gone into the habit that she had after meeting Nathan again of waking early in the morning and jogging around the island (which was a challenge on Outset, since the southern area was on a raised cliff, so she just ran back and forth a couple of times) and inserting nutrition into her diet so she could lose the weight gained during her pregnancy. One early morning she was jogging as usual when she saw a shadowed form cast onto the shore. She broke into a sprint to see what it was: a body. She knelt down next to it and saw in the moonlight that it was a young boy, about fourteen years old. His chest was heaving up and down; he was breathing, at least.

"Hey, kid," she said. "Can you hear me?"

The boy stirred. "Yeah, I'm fine. Where am I?"

"You're on Outset Island. My name's Ketura -"

"Ketura?" the boy sat up. "It's been a while."

"Oh, it's you," said Ketura, recognizing Lucas's voice. "Why aren't you on this ship?" She helped him stand up and led him to the house.

"Well, yesterday, we ran into Bellum around Kakariko Island and led him away from the island. He eventually caught up to us and boarded our ship. His knights killed everyone on board except Ganondorf, Marlene, and me. Ganondorf used his magic powers to create these pig-like humanoid creatures to fight the knights, and he told me to get to this island and tell you what happened before literally throwing me off the ship. I've been swimming nonstop since then until a few hours ago. Thanks for interrupting my sleep."

"What happened to Ganondorf and Marlene?" asked Ketura worriedly.

"No clue. I hope they dealt with Bellum or at least drove him away for the time being. What's it going to take to finish him off? And what does it matter to you what happened to Ganondorf? You've got your husband and your kid. Nobody else matters to you."

"That's wrong, Lucas," asserted Ketura.

"Ganondorf doesn't think so. If you really cared about him, Ketura, you would have stayed with him. He said so himself."

"Nice try with the guilt-trip, Lucas. He understands that my family is my top priority."

"Maybe, but for the longest time after you all left, we all seriously thought that he would get rid of his Triforce of Power and kill himself, he was so depressed. I don't want to fall in love if I can get jilted like that."

"We're here, Lucas," said Ketura as she opened up the door to the house and used the faint moonlight to find the couch. "The couch is over here. Just follow my voice. Over here. Wrong way. That way leads to the bathroom. I'm. Over. Here. Good. Sleep all you need, oka- Hold on." She heard Remus wailing again, found the staircase in the dark, and bounded up it to tend to the infant.

Meanwhile, Lucas threw himself down onto the couch and immediately fell asleep.


	3. Two

**TWO**

Everyone else was alarmed to wake up and see Lucas snoozing away on the couch, especially Beth, and Ketura had to explain who he was and what had happened.

"That crackpot better not have followed him," said Beth, taking a solemn look at the sleeping teenager.

--

Later that day, Lucas finally woke up and got reacquainted with Nathan and Catherine, got to know Beth, and spent some time holding Remus.

"How does a nice young man like you end up on a pirate ship?" inquired Beth during the long conversation.

"I ran away from home," explained Lucas, but instead of a proud tone in his voice, he sounded slightly remorseful. "On the day of the flood, this feeling came upon me - I can't explain it at all - and I wind up with this," he held his hand up to show the Triforce crest. "It's the Triforce of Wisdom, I think. Anyway, my parents were so proud of me - well, not my real parents, I was adopted - I was acting more responsible and making smarter decisions. And then, one day, I decide I want more from life than what Bella and William were offering me."

"Lucas, we knew Bella and William," said Ketura. "They miss you a lot."

"Yeah right," scoffed Lucas. "I heard they got stuck with me when I was a baby. That my real parents didn't want me. I doubt they want me either."

"Why are you talking like that?" asked Nathan. "Of course they do."

"Bella and William are good people," asserted Ketura, thinking about how much better they were than his real mother.

"They did give me a home and lots of love for twelve years of my life," reasoned Lucas. "Maybe . . . they do want me after all. I should go back to them."

"Not with Bellum sailing around, you're not," objected Ketura. "Besides, you don't even have a way to get there."

Lucas sighed. "I miss Marlene," he muttered before exiting the house.

--

Lucas took a stroll along the shore of Outset Island, holding his right hand in his left as if to protect the Triforce of Wisdom from the outside world. He hadn't set foot on dry land for eight years, even when the _Flying Cucco_ came to an island; he would just stay on the ship as part of his cabin boy duties.

Outset was a nice little island, he decided. He saw a man in his sixties along with his wife sitting on the porch of their house playing with three young children that might have been their grandchildren. Sitting nearby was a blonde woman who was probably in her mid-twenties; the mother of the children.

_Would Bella and William want me back? _he thought with a sigh. He turned his head north to look out at the ocean, but upon seeing the horribly familiar, unwanted, unwelcome black ship with the eye insignia on the sails coming towards the island, he broke into a run back to Beth's house.

"Ketura! Nathan!" he shouted upon entering the house. "Bellum's here!"

"What?" Ketura was rocking Remus to sleep at that time. "Bellum?"

"Yes, Bellum! His ship is approaching the island right now!"

She got out of the rocking chair and made her way over to Lucas. "Take Remus and hide in the basement. If he starts to wake up and cry . . . do what you must to keep him quiet." She handed Remus over to Lucas before going into her bedroom, grabbing her sword forged from the pure metals and dashing as fast as she could to the school, which was behind the house. True to Lucas's word, Bellum's ship was making its way to shore.

She went inside the school, and Nathan was busy teaching the students; Catherine sat in the front row.

"Hi, Ketura," said Nathan upon noticing his wife. "Why are you-"

"Look out the window." Ketura ordered. Nathan did so, and he jumped so violently that he knocked his easel over. Upon regaining his composure, he spoke to the class.

"Kids, go home and hide somewhere safe. Tell your parents that everyone's in danger."

The students began to ask questions.

"Why?" "What's wrong?" "Daddy, is it Bellum?"

"Yes, it is," said Nathan, taking Catherine's hand and leading her back to the house. Ketura followed.

The Lykos family went to the basement where Lucas, Remus, and Beth were hiding (Lucas had told her what was going on) and Ketura told Catherine to hide and be quiet.

"Aren't you going to hide, too?" she asked her mother.

"No, I'm not. I'm going to fight him, dear," answered Ketura.

"What if you don't come back?"

"Don't say that, Catherine. Your dad and I will be fine," promised Ketura, giving her daughter a hug and a kiss. "I love you,"

"I love you too, Mom. I love you, Daddy."

Ketura and Nathan exited the basement and went outside. Bellum's ship was pulled up to the dock, and Professor Octavius Bellum himself was standing on the beach, surveying the island as if he were looking for something. He wasn't accompanied by any of his phantom knights.

Some people were walking his way to see who he was. Ketura and Nathan hid behind a bush and listened to Bellum lying to the islanders about how he was a humble explorer. One woman said that her son had told her that his art teacher had seen the ship and decided that everyone was in danger. Bellum laughed. "Xenophobic teacher," he said.

"Nonsense. Mr. Lykos is a fine man."

"Lykos?"

"Yep," said a man. "I wish his wife wasn't married, though. She's a real beauty, I tell you, with those proud, beast-like blue eyes of hers."

Bellum cursed rather loudly.

"What's with the foul mouth, man?"

"Oh, sorry. It's just - I love blue-eyed women. Anyways, have you seen a young man, about nineteen or twenty years old? He has blonde hair and gray eyes, and he should look like a pirate."

"I think I've seen him. He lives with Beth. She lives over that way."

"Thank you good sir." The conversation ceased, and they could hear Bellum walking their way. Right when he was about to pass the bush, he stopped.

"Are you two children, to be playfully spying on me?" he said to the bush. He stepped around, and saw the two adults crouched over.

"Ketura, what is it with your inability to die when you are killed?" said Bellum.

She stood up, Nathan along with her. "What are you doing here?" she asked coldly.

"Yesterday, I found the _Flying Cucco_ and finished everyone except Marlene, Ganondorf, and Lucas. Ganondorf tossed Lucas off the ship, telling him to 'Go and tell them.' I was curious to know who he meant by 'them.' I guess he meant you all."

"Where are they?" demanded Ketura. "What have you done to them?"

"I left them alone when I decided to pursue Lucas."

Ketura took a couple of steps back. She wrapped her hand around the hilt of her sword, strapped to her waist. She moved to attack, but before she could draw her sword, she was on the ground, her face in the grass.

"Did you honestly believe that you could pull a sneak attack on me?" sneered Bellum. "Now, I let Ganondorf and Marlene get away, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let them live. You, Ketura, are going to be my bait."

"No she won't." Nathan objected.

"Yes she will." Bellum lifted Ketura up and secured an arm around her waist so he could drag her to his ship. Nathan was running behind them, taking the sword with him. Once on board the ship, Ketura was placed inside the same cabin she had lived in eight years previously. Nathan joined her inside the next moment.

"Why didn't you fight back?" he questioned, keeping his voice down.

"This is our chance, Nathan," explained Ketura. "If we go with him, we can wait for the opportunity to present itself that will allow us to do him in!"

"How long are you willing to wait?"

"As long as it takes."


	4. Three

**THREE**

Bellum sailed on east, not detailing where exactly where he was going, not that it mattered to his hostages. He wrote a letter to Ganondorf and Marlene stating that he was greatly displeased that Ganondorf did not properly kill her and planned to do it himself, "in a remote location where nobody will ever find her. If you wish to save her, come find me." He created a new kind of creature out of life force for this errand: it was round and white, with a single dark eye with a fluorescent blue pupil in the middle. It boasted bat wings and pointed ears.

He entered the cabin that Nathan and Ketura were sharing the day that he set off.

"I am so glad you decided to tag along, Nathan," said Bellum. "I don't want Ketura getting lonely. Plus, I have a new experiment to conduct, and it requires a human body. But I'm not doing it quite yet. No, not for another few years, I don't think.

"Anyway, I do not want you two to be in the mindset that you are my prisoners. Rather, you are my guests, and you will live and be treated as such. However, it is conditional. I want things in return. Mostly from you, Ketura."

"Bellum, if you think that I'll consent to being -" Ketura was interrupted.

"The idea of using you for sex hasn't even crossed my mind, but thank you for bringing it up. No, Ketura, I want you to help me achieve my goal of destroying humanity. In about a week and a half, we shall be at the Cobble Kingdom, a mighty civilization that is first on my list to destroy."

"You want me to help you kill innocent people? Forget it." protested Ketura.

"I didn't tell you about this experiment I was planning, did I? It's not an experiment, really, but I need a human heart to study, and removing it from your husband's body will be a messy, painful ordeal."

Ketura jumped up and walked over to Bellum so their faces were only inches apart. "Do. Not. Touch. My. Husband."

Bellum gripped Ketura by the chin. "Do everything I say and I won't." He smiled slyly, letting go of Ketura's chin. "Supper will be in a couple of hours. Make yourselves at home." He turned around and left the cabin, shutting the door behind him.

Under her breath, Ketura called Bellum some extremely nasty names and insulted his mother as well.

"Ketura, you're not going to - are you? Just for me?" Nathan stood up and walked over to her. He wound his arms around her body and held her close.

"I love you, Nathan. I don't want to lose another person to Bellum," said Ketura.

"You will have him killed by the time we get to the Cobble place, won't we?"

"I'll try. Oh, Nathan, what about our kids?"

"They'll be fine. But I have an idea, Ketura. During the slaughter of the Cobble Kingdom, you can sneak attack Bellum and get him there."

Ketura didn't respond; she just wriggled free of Nathan's embrace and sat down on the bed. "I don't feel right about this either, Nathan. I don't want to hurt innocent people."

"You don't have to. Ketura, this is our chance. You said it yourself. It will all end very soon." Nathan sat down next to her and once again took her into his arms.


	5. Four

**FOUR**

"Where is she?"

Ganondorf and Marlene had sailed away from Bellum for a few hours as he followed Lucas to Outset, then changed course and headed south after him. When the _Flying Cucco_ reached the island the next night, they made it to Outset to find Lucas, Catherine, and a little baby boy, but no Nathan or Ketura.

"Where is who?" asked Beth, who had reluctantly allowed the pirates into her home. She had taken it upon herself to care for Remus while his parents were gone who-know-where.

"Ketura!" snapped Ganondorf angrily.

"Well, something went really wrong this afternoon, and Ketura and Nathan - I don't think they're here anymore."

"What happened?"

"Bellum," said Lucas.

Marlene sighed; Ganondorf punched the wall with such force that he punched a hole through the wall.

"I think they went east," Lucas added. "If you want to chase them."

"Oh, you bet I'm going to chase him." Ganondorf snarled, looking over to Marlene. "Let's go."

"Excuse me, are you going to fix my wall first?" asked Beth, a bit of exasperation in her voice.

"I'll do it," said Lucas.

"Are you coming with us?" Marlene asked him; she was taking a turn holding Remus.

"No, sorry, Marlene. I'm going home."

"Okay, let's cut the gab and go. We're wasting crucial time here!"

--

Marlene stood at the very end of the bow, looking through her telescope to try and find Bellum. Previously, her desire to put Bellum down was out of concern for the well-being of humanity, but now it was personal. Although she was never extremely close to anyone in her crew, even after thirteen years together, their deaths were still hard for her to swallow. Unlike her parents that tried to force her into arranged marriage, they were family, yet now was not the time to mourn. Now was the time to avenge them.

Eventually, she caught a black speck in the sky flying towards them. It flew closer . . . closer . . . closer . . . until a creature resembling an eyeball with bat ears and eyes was hovering in front of her face with a letter tied to its wing addressed to Ganondorf. She removed the letter and went below deck to find Ganondorf, wincing at the Bokoblins who had become the new crew of the _Flying Cucco_.

Ganondorf was sitting in the galley, his hands balled up into fists on the table.k

"I just got this letter. It's for you." Marlene explained as she handed over the letter. Ganondorf opened it and read it out loud.

"'Greetings, Ganondorf. I am greatly displeased that you did not properly kill dear Ketura like I wanted you to, so I figured I would just do it myself. I am going east now. While I am there, I will kill her in a remote location where nobody will ever find her. If you wish to save her, come find me. And you might want to be quick about it. I am an impatient man, and I won't give up without a fight. Yours truly, Professor Octavius Bellum.'" Ganondorf set the letter down on the table and took a deep breath before erupting.

"YOU BASTARD!"

As his fist made contact with the table, the table was broken into two. He was left sitting in the chair, the broken table before him, Marlene standing a foot away.

Silence.

"I'll go order the crew to speed things up. I'll have them lightening the load and rowing, even. Wait - what happened to that bird of yours? It carried off that horrid yellow one-eyed Octo thing and was never seen again. Well, whatever." Marlene turned around to do what she announced, but -

"It's no use anyway."

Ganondorf's words froze Marlene where she stood.

"That doesn't mean we still can't try, does it?" she questioned.

"I want to go to Bellum, Marlene. But I don't think that there's any saving Ketura. She's - she's going to die. And so am I."

"Ganondorf, no. You can't."

"Marlene. I've been alive for far too long. And only one person has ever brought me any sliver of happiness. Ketura. I love her more than anything else and I can't stand to live while she doesn't."

"Ganondorf, you can't even think of giving up and letting Bellum kill you. You are probably the only person who can do anything right now. You can do something good for the world right here."

"And fail, just like all the other times I tried to to good things."

Marlene didn't respond immediately. Instead, she thought of her next argument carefully.

"You just said that you love Ketura more than anything else. I'm not much for this being in love thing, but aren't you supposed to do whatever you can to ensure that your loved one's okay? If that's the case, then there is still a chance. Next time you get up, I want you to sift through the galley, the kitchen and the cabins for any spare junk we won't need anymore. Take that junk and toss it overboard. Start with that table."

She turned around and went up to the deck, giving out orders to the Bokoblins commanding them to toss overboard all unnecessary items and start a rowing team that would power them quickly and efficiently.

In the distance, she saw a black speck on the waterline.


	6. Five

**FIVE**

Hyrule.

Its green fields are a sight for sore eyes, a relief for feet that rarely walk on dry land. The familiar castle sits in the distance, waiting.

Once the castle is approached, it is entered, and there is the large, proud statue of the Hero of Time, raising its stone sword to the ceiling. One could have stared at that statue forever, and reflect upon the young lad's heroic deeds - but the statue's head suddenly flies off and lands all the way across the main hall. Behind the rest of the statue is a monster shaped like a wrinkled pear and colored a dark, pallid yellow. It has one large, dark eye and six tentacles streaming behind it, each one with its own eye.

The monster zooms forward, out of the castle. It comes back in a minute later with a person caught within the grasp of one of its tentacles. This person is a man in his middle twenties with shaggy black hair and a handsome face. He is thrown onto the ground violently, almost killed, yet he is still alive. The horrid creature spits some sort of purple liquid out of its eye onto the man. The man is completely covered up by the liquid, and it dissolves into his body. Soon, there is nothing left of him but a pale statue.

Next, the monster leaves the castle again, into the surrounding Castle Town, which is in flames. Another behemoth is running amuck the conflagration; it resembles a wild boar with very dark fur, long tusks, and a firy red mane. The boar sees the other monster and turns its way, ready to attack.

The boar lunges.

Its tusks make contact with the flesh of the other monster, skewering it. The boar throws its foe into a pillar of fire and watches it burn. As the monster burns, it turns into a human. All the surroundings fade away as only a fifteen-year-old girl is left. She is immersed in her own blood, and her body lays broken where it is. Some strands of bright red hair remain undefiled . . . .

--

"Wake up!"

Ganondorf opened his eyes, surprised at himself because he fell asleep in the chair. He rarely slept, ate, or drank; the Triforce of Power eliminated any need to. Marlene was standing over him, her hands on his collarbone. Her command to wake him up wouldn't have done it, but pushing down on an old wound did.

"Ah!" he groaned. "I have an old battle wound there. Hands off." When Marlene backed away, he stretched and straightened himself up.

"Sorry. It's just - you were twitching big time," said Marlene.

"Oh, it's this dumb dream that I had," explained Ganondorf. "Bellum was destroying Hyrule."

"Well, we can worry about that not happening," said Marlene nonchalantly.

"Yeah, I made it possible,"

"You slept through an old friend shooting cannonballs at us," Marlene began. "I had the crew slow the ship down to see what he would do, but he just kept sailing away. We're still on his tail right now."

"That's great news," mumbled Ganondorf sarcastically. He got up and saw the table before him that he had broken in half. He picked up both pieces, went up to deck, and tossed them into the ocean. His eyes then looked to the east and saw the dot on the cloudy horizon that was no doubt Bellum's ship.

"Looks like a storm's brewing," noted Marlene; she had come up to the deck to supervise the rowing team.  
"Hopefully we'll get a strong west wind."

Marlene was right; five minutes later, a torrential thunderstorm poured from the cloud-darkened sky into the ocean, a rainfall that almost equalled the might of the the rain that flooded the world. However, the wind kept shifting directions, from northeast to south to west and so forth.

--

"This is just great!" shouted Ganondorf so his voice could be heard over the rain and the wind. "Hopefully we don't get another hurricane!"

"I'd be more worried about that!" Marlene shrieked, pointing at something behind him. He turned to see a wave about half a mile high moving its way towards the _Flying Cucco._ In a matter of seconds, the wave hit the ship and caused it to tip over so it was straight up. Marlene had grabbed hold of the mast, and Ganondorf held onto the railing.

The ship capsized.

Marlene saw it coming, so she let go of the mast as soon as she was underwater. She tried to swim around the ship to reach the surface, but when she was almost there, she ran out of the breath that would sustain her underwater.

A warm feeling rushed over her body, and the last thing she saw before going under was a white wall surrounding her ship, completely closing it off from the ocean.


	7. Six

**SIX**

Bellum's ship (which he named the _Ghost_) endured the storm and continued sailing on. Bellum himself wasn't too concerned with what happened outside; instead, as his crew of knights steered through the tempest, he had dinner with Ketura and Nathan.

Beforehand, he popped into the cabin inhabited by the couple he was holding captive and told Ketura to look in the closet and use what was in there. Much to her dismay, it was a nice dress: basically white, with a large skirt, and the whole thing was covered in purple lace.

"I would rather have all my life force drained," she spat after Bellum left the room.

"At least it's not pink," commented Nathan.

"Yeah, I guess," sighed Ketura. "Look away for a while, will you?" As Nathan looked out the porthole to watch the thunderstorm, Ketura took off her columbia blue blouse and black pants and struggled to put on the dress. It was too tight around her middle.

"It doesn't look too bad," commented Nathan when he was given the okay to look at his wife again.

"Shut up," she moaned.

--

Bellum had built an actual dining room in his ship since Ketura had last been here. It was lavishly decorated in bold colors. The dining table in the middle of the room was crafted from lacquered cedar wood, as were the chairs that went with it. When Nathan and Ketura were escorted to the dining room by a knight, Bellum was already sitting down at the head of the table.

"I'm so glad you two could join me for dinner," he said, standing up. "And you look very nice, Ketura."

"Next time you're out dress shopping, keep in mind I've had a baby and I still haven't lost all my pregnancy weight,"

"Usually, when a lady is complemented on her beauty, she replies with a 'thank you' and blushes," rebuked Bellum.

"Then I'm not a lady, am I?"

"I jus wanted you to have something nice to wear before you get blood all over that other blouse you have. Now, sit, both of you." Bellum pointed to the two chairs on either side of him at the table, and the couple took a seat opposite of one another.

Out of a door behind Bellum's chair came several knights who were carrying trays laden with food of all sorts: meat, steamed vegetables, rice, etc. Plates were laid out in front of each person and food was served accordingly.

"Where do you get this food out at sea?" asked Nathan, wondering what kind of meat he had been served - it was pink, mushy, and about the size of a coconut.

"I grow my own food and I - uh - fish." Bellum said, not bothering to conceal his lie.

"This meat doesn't taste like fish," said Ketura after sampling it. "Or any meat I've ever had before."

"And you rarely eat meat as it is," added Nathan. He picked up his fork and used it to take a bite of the meat. He immediately coughed it back up onto his plate. "Dear Farore," he gasped; the chunk he had tried to eat was oozing blood.

"I thought I told my cook to remove the blood," grumbled Bellum.

"What's that white thing?" asked Ketura, pointing at a white spot shining out of the spot where Nathan had taken his bite. Nathan tapped on the white spot and felt how it was as hard as a bone. He began to peel the meat away with his fingers, then let out a scream as he realized it was a human skull.

"Oh dear," said Bellum.

"Are you trying to make us cannibals?" asked Ketura angrily. She began to rip away at her meat; a skeletal foot was enclosed in the flesh. "This is just disgusting."

"No, I am not. See, I have cannibalistic tendencies from time to time, and I did not plan to pick you two up. If you don't want to eat my food, then eat your own. Ketura, that carrot you just popped into your mouth is my food."

"It's not much of a dinner if not everyone's eating, is it?" questioned Nathan.

"You're a rotten host," said Ketura.

"You may both leave now," snapped Bellum. "And Ketura, I want that dress back."

Without a second's hesitation, Ketura picked up her knife, stuck it down the front of her dress, and pulled it down so it ripped the dress all the way down the bodice. Once she reached the skirt, she simply stepped out of it, picked it up, and threw it at Bellum.

"There you go." She said cooly, not caring that a man who had once raped her was staring at her while she was wearing just her undergarments. She turned around and went back to her cabin, Nathan trailing behind.

--

"So much for treating us like guests," moaned Ketura as she put her blouse and pants back on. "He 'accidentally' feeds us human flesh - I mean, how disgusting is that? After killing people, he keeps their bodies so he can have something to eat? He also says that if we don't eat the food we provide us, we don't eat at all!"

"You had a lot of nerve to strip down in front of him," said Nathan. "You're not afraid he's going to try and rape you again?"

"Well - I wasn't thinking about that. I haven't in a long time," Ketura admitted. "I always thought of you as Catherine's real father, and that's always . . . ." Her voice trailed off, and her sapphire eyes flooded with tears. "I miss them so much!"

"Who, the kids?" asked Nathan. He walked over to Ketura and gently wiped away his wife's tears with the back of his index finger with one hand while the other hand cupped itself around her neck.

"Yes, the kids," sobbed Ketura. "We counted on Catherine having a normal childhood, with both parents around all the time, and nothing to worry about. Now, she's distressed because we're not there for her, and she knows about Bellum. And Remus -"

"Ketura, shh," Nathan couldn't resist winding his arms around her body. "I miss them too. Our son will never know us until we go back. He'll grow up thinking that Beth is his mother.

"If it makes you feel any better, I'm here with you. I will never leave you, Ketura." Nathan walked her over to the bed and laid her down. He rolled over next to her and propped up on his side. "Let's try and sleep now, shall we?"

--

Nathan was awoken in the middle of the night by the door to the cabin opening. He rolled over to check on Ketura, but she wasn't lying asleep beside him. He rolled back over to face the door, and he saw a silhouette of a figure standing in a doorway, apparently holding bundles of something.

"Who's that?" he whispered.

"It's me," answered Ketura softly as she quietly kicked the door shut. "I went to the galley and stole some food. It's enough to last us a few days."

"Ketura! What if Bellum sees us eating his food?"

"I'll decide what if it ever happens," she retorted as she waddled over to the bed. She lowered herself to her knees and sat the food down and began to stash it under the bed, making sure it would be well-concealed under proper lighting.

"Don't you ever think about stuff before doing it?"

"When there are lives in danger, no I don't."


	8. Seven

**SEVEN**

Daphnes was now rowing east, following Bellum, hoping the man would lead him to Ganondorf. As he went, he pondered what he would do once he found Ganondorf.

_I should kill him. He destroyed Hyrule . . . but what good will that do? His death won't revive Hyrule._

_Perhaps . . . perhaps it's my fault. That night everything changed, when the conspiracy came to kill Zelda, and Zelda faked illness as a trap to catch them . . . . I should not have let him escape._

_Of course, I am a king, even if my kingdom is gone. I do not want to get my hand dirty with a murder._

He sighed and rowed on. There were no sign of any islands in this patch of ocean; just a small ship behind him sailing north. The ship was being pursued by a large bird with dark feathers and a brilliant gold plumage. The ship fired cannons at it, but they all missed.

Immediately, Daphnes turned his rowboat around and headed to the small ship to aid it. He stopped, however, when the bird was finally struck by a cannonball in its rear; another ship was there, to the rescue. From a distance, he observed the following scene after the bird clumsily flew west.

"What did you do to anger that bird?" called a man from the ship that had performed the rescue. It was a ship powered by steam and wheels, with a long hull and a blue and white dome for a bridge.

"I tried to steal a feather off its tail while it wasn't looking," answered the female captain of the other ship, which was modeled like a miniature pirate ship.

The man laughed.

"Thank you for saving me," said the woman. She moved her ship closer to the man's. "I'm Jolene."

"The name's Linebeck," answered the man.

"Well, Linebeck, I was heading towards Windfall Island to see what treasure I can find there. Would you care to join me?"

"I sure would."

Without another word, Linebeck and Jolene sailed away, their ships side by side. Daphnes rowed on.

--

By the time night had fallen, Daphnes had made it to a small island where he decided to rest for the night. He found the softest patch of dirt and staked it out as his resting place. As he lay on his side, he noticed something colorful propped up on a boulder. He got up and looked at it.

It was a mask. Heart shaped, it was purple and red and it had eight spikes going down the sides and two on top. Its eyes were orange with a yellow center and green irises. The whole mask bore intricate patterns around the outer edge.

_Interesting,_ thought Daphnes. He reached his hand out to touch it, and when his fingertips merely brushed the cold, smooth surface of the mask, the eyes flashed red. Daphnes yelped out of shock and stumbled back.

The mask came alive. It rose slowly and floated in midair, as if it were surveying Daphnes. After a few moments, it turned onto its side and began to spin rapidly. It launched itself at Daphnes.

He dived out of the way just in time. The mask arced around and had another shot at its target. Again, unsuccessful.

Long, garnet-colored ribbons grew out of the back of the mask. One of the ribbons lashed out and struck Daphnes on his left cheek. He wiped some blood away and decided to launch himself at the mask. He grabbed a ribbon and pulled the mask down to him. However, the mask simply withdrew the ribbons and freed itself. Once free, it rose about twenty feet higher.

_"An unsuitable puppet . . . you have your own power . . . I sense it. I shall consume . . . . Consume all . . . ."_

The mask flew away.

Daphnes watched until the flying mask was just a speck in the sky. He didn't quite know what it was, but he decided that Ganondorf could wait.


	9. Eight

**EIGHT**

"I can't believe you have never gotten caught once in all the days we've been here," said Nathan incredulously as Ketura slipped through the cabin door, arms laden with food.

"Hey, we've got to eat. Lucky for us that Bellum hasn't come to see us since he tried to make us cannibals," said Ketura as she dumped the food onto the floor next to the bed. "Take something before I stash it away." She grabbed three carrot sticks and began to eat. Nathan snagged a banana. Ketura kicked the rest of the food underneath the bed.

"How do you think the kids are doing?" asked Ketura after finishing her first carrot.

"They're fine. Beth is taking good care of them. You should stop worrying."

The two finished eating in silence.

"I never noticed that you still wear that necklace," Nathan observed finally.

"Oh, this?" Ketura looked down at the small black disc that had a diamond in the middle of it, which hung from a silk cord. She had bought it from Nathan the day they met. "I like it."

The door flew open.

"We've made it to the Cobble Kingdom." Bellum announced.

--

Bellum took Ketura up to the deck of the ship and gave her the pure metal sword. Before her was a large city on an island. The whole city was filled with golden pyramids: some were taller than others, and one towered over them all.

"The Cobble Kingdom," announced Bellum. "The greatest Eastern civilization in this immediate section of the world. It goes down first."

Ketura's heartbeat sped up.

"Your directions are simple. Kill every person you come across. We do not leave - and Nathan isn't safe - until they are all dead. Understand?"

Too nervous to speak, she nodded. Ketura didn't plan to kill these innocent people, she wanted to kill Bellum when he was unsuspecting. If she weren't cemented to the spot by nerves, she would have done it right then.

"Lower the gangplank!" cried Bellum. Some phantom knights brought forward the gangplank and lowered it onto the dock. "You there," said Bellum, pointing at a knight in gold armor.

"Yes, sir?" asked the gold knight.

"Assemble your men. It's time for some death."

Ten minutes later, every phantom knight on the _Ghost_ was on the deck, standing before Bellum.

"Your instructions are simple," Bellum began. "Kill every living thing you see. Except her," he pointed at Ketura. "She will be aiding you. However, if she should stray, even for a split second - bring her to me."

_Good. Perfect._ Ketura thought.

"But sir," an audacious blue knight spoke up. "There are only ten knights here, and there are many people in the Cobble Kingdom."

"No need to worry," said Bellum. He clapped his hands twice. While causing a great splash, the great yellow monster created by Bellum appeared. Its large eye kept rolling around in the socket, the yellow-orange iris zooming up and down and around. Six tentacles streamed behind it.

"You! Drain as much life force as you can and bring it to me!" Bellum shouted at the creature.

The monster groaned. Ketura assumed it understood its master's instructions.

"Everyone," said Bellum, "Attack."

--

Ketura stepped down the gangplank first. On the shore, she saw two small stones that looked almost identical laying side by side. The stones were shaped like triangles with rounded points; they were colored a rich violet color with a white stripe running across the surface. After admiring them for a second, she picked both of them up and popped them into her pocket before going into town.

Every building was a pyramid, and they were all crammed together. Any ground not covered by a pyramid was cobble road, and crowded with tan, dark-haired, colorfully garbed people. She shoved her way through, and as she did, she shouted "You are all in grave danger! Hide yourself! Hide your families! Or you will all die!" She figured that straying from Bellum's instructions was the best way to get him alone.

A few people laughed at her; others gasped and bolted away. One woman screamed and saw the yellow monster soaring above her head. Others looked up and saw it. They all were thrown into a frenzy.

Before she knew it, Ketura was face down on the ground, being nearly trampled by people. When all the people had cleared, she got up and saw the army of phantom knights before her.

"Um . . . they all went that way." she said as she pointed towards the stampede of people.

The knights charged on, and Ketura lagged behind some; enough to see one knight lagging behind the rest and take a stab at the eye in the back of his armor. When the blade of her sword made contact, the knight let out a small "Oh!" and fell on its face before dissolving into sand.

The knights stopped and looked behind them.

"Hey, there's only nine of us!" a red-armored knight said after seeing the sand and counting how many comrades it had.

"I . . . accidentally jabbed one in the eye while running," lied Ketura.

"Put your sword away, woman," ordered the gold knight. She did so.

The knights continued their charge. They made it to the crowd of people who were stuck in the town square and began to attack the civilians. Ketura dived into the crowd and offered anyone who would listen a chance to get away and live. She was able to rope in two families, each with young children. While everyone else was panicking and unwittingly waiting for their turn to die, Ketura led these two families away and to the big pyramid.

"King Mutoh's palace?" questioned the father of one of the families.

"Do you know a better hiding place?" interrogated Ketura. "If it is a palace, then there should be soldiers. We tell them what's going on, and you will get some help."

"You are an outsider," said a mother, "you cannot enter the palace. But thank you."

The families went into the palace. Ketura turned around and was face-to-face with the gold knight.

"Straying from instructions, are we?" it asked.

"A little, yeah," retorted Ketura. She saw three other knights behind the leader. "What are you going to do, tell Bellum?"

The gold knight thrust out its hand to grab Ketura, but she got out of the way in time. She ran around the back and stabbed the knight in its eye. A sinking feeling arose in her chest as she turned around and remembered the other knights there. Two of them - red ones - sped forward and each grabbed one arm. The third one (a blue one) took her sword from her.

As she was being dragged back to the ship, Ketura saw the great yellow beast picking up people with its tentacles and sticking the end of the tentacle into the victim's mouth. In a matter of seconds, the person within the tentacle's grasp was nothing but a pale statue, and was dropped to the ground. The statue shattered into pieces upon hitting the ground. The other five knights were busy picking off the crowd in the town square.

The monster was back at the _Ghost_ when the knights returned with Ketura. Bellum was taking one tentacle at a time, squeezing the eye on the end, and removed the collected life force. He took a handful at a time, tossed it into the air, and watching it become another knight. "Go and kill," he would command it.

"Sir!" one of the red knights alerted Bellum to their presence.

Bellum did not acknowledge them until he finished creating new soldiers and the creature flew away to gather more life force. "Ketura, you disappoint me," he said. "You don't have the guts to kill a few people? Heh - you're weaker than I thought. Release her."

The knights dropped Ketura to all fours and took a few steps back.

"Bring the man out to me," ordered Bellum.

"No!" pleaded Ketura. She scrambled to her feet and was poised to pursue the knight sent to fetch Nathan. As she broke into a run, Bellum grabbed her arm.

"I am not going to kill him today. Instead, I am going to kill you. See, I thought about it for a while. You don't want him to suffer, do you? And I know that he would be tortured if he watched you die. You are going to die with the knowledge that he will be in anguish without you for the rest of his life. You can go to him, but I doubt it will do much good." Bellum released her arm.

Ketura dashed below deck, and when she reached the blue knight, she sped up her pace and delivered a hard kick in its back eye. She picked her sword back up and ran to Nathan in the cabin.

"Ketura, what's going on?" he asked upon seeing her.

"Bellum's going to kill me," Ketura said hastily. She remembered the stones in her pocket. "I would kill him, but he's popping out more knights like rabbits have offspring, and I would be no match for them -"

"Hush," said Nathan. He took Ketura's free hand with both of his. "I will go and prepare a boat. You go and try to kill Bellum. If you absolutely can't, then find the boat and get out of here."

"Won't you come with me?"

"If I stay here, Bellum will keep me alive long enough to find you again, or for you to find him. Besides, as long as I know you're safe, I can handle anything he has planned for me."

"Nathan. I'm not leaving you." Ketura said firmly.

"Find Marlene and Ganondorf. Get some people together in a small army to fight. Go back to Outset and check on the kids if you want. Just put as much ocean between you and Bellum as you can."

"Nathan, I haven't been on my own since I was fifteen. I don't know if I can go back to that . . . I won't leave you. I am so sick of people I love willing to take the fall for me -"

He interrupted her with a kiss. "I love you, and I don't want to be separated either. But if it comes to that . . . . Let's go."

--

As Nathan sneaked around to find a boat, Ketura marched back up to the deck and saw Bellum standing there, watching the destruction on the island before him proudly.

"You killed the knight, didn't you?" he asked, not turning around to meet Ketura's gaze.

"Yes. I hope to kill you now." Ketura tightened her grip on the hilt of the sword and watched as Bellum drew his own blade. When Bellum lunged at her, the duel began. As usual, there were very few holes in his defense, and he was even able to cover those holes quite well. After a few minutes of nothing but clanging metal, Ketura finally managed to slash Bellum on his arm. It didn't kill him, but it made him pause for a second; ample time to try and go for the fatal stab.

Had she moved faster, she would have gotten him. Bellum blocked her, and the duel continued. A minute passed, and Ketura's sword flew out of her hand. While her sword-wielding hand was still in the air, Bellum stabbed his sword right through her palm.

Ketura's injured hand shrank back so it could be held by the other. She stumbled back and ducked when Bellum took another swipe, intending to decapitate her. She ran away from him and made her way to the stern, where Nathan was waiting with the boat.

"He got my hand," she explained. "I can't fight anymore."

"Then go!" said Nathan. "You only need one hand to steer this." The boat was metal, and looked as if it would be powered by steam or coal.

"KETURA! YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM ME, AND YOU CAN'T PROTECT HIM!" Bellum shouted.

Without another word, Nathan picked Ketura up and put her inside the boat before lowering it into the ocean below. He saw the sword that flew from her hand lying oh so peculiarly on the steering wheel of the ship. He went over to it, picked it up, and dropped it onto the boat below. He saw Ketura looking up at him.

"KETURA!" he shouted.

Ketura took a few seconds to get situated, but she finally took off in the opposite direction. He sighed, then headed back into the cabin; getting past Bellum took no effort. He sat down on the bed and saw Ketura's necklace laying on the sheets.


	10. Nine

**NINE**

As she powered the boat away from the _Ghost_, Ketura wondered if her bleeding mass of a hand would ever be useful again. She let it hang limply at her side and let the blood drip onto the deck.

The boat that Nathan had stolen was aboutten meters long, and the bridge of the boat took up four of them. All the controls for the ship - the coal oven, the backup pedal power system, the steering wheel, the periscope, etc. were located inside the bridge. It moved pretty fast, and she could probably be a fifth of the way back to Outset by the next night.

_I should go after the _Flying Cucco, she decided. Sure, the surviving members of the crew might not be too thrilled to see her, but she would be safer on a pirate ship than this small little boat. Plus, Marlene could give Ketura's hand some medical attention.

_What about Ganondorf? Ah, ever since he killed Dad, it's been painful to think about him, even though I forgave him for that._

_And as much as I would love to go see the kids, I can't do that to them. I can't just show up and leave. Plus, Catherine's at that age where shetells every piece of information that she hears. What if Bellum or his knights stop by the island and ask her where I went?_

_Just keep moving west, I guess_; _this steering wheel needs two hands._

--

Ketura kept plowing on westward until nightfall, then she used the periscope to check behind her; nobody was following. A few knots in front of the boat, however, was a person in the water clinging to some driftwood. The heart-shaped face was easily recognizable.

"Marlene!" she gasped, and continued on.

She made it to Marlene in about an hour and did the best she could to help her onto the boat.

"What happened?" asked Ketura.

"Remember that storm last week? We tried to sail through it, but this huge wave capsized the boat and Ganondorf created this state of suspended animation to keep us from drowning, and it just now broke. Right now, he's trying to save some stuff from the ship . . . my ship is ruined, Ketura. I can't believe it. I built it with my own hands . . . well, my crew helped.

"Oh, dear Nayru. What happened to your hand?"

"What do you think happened?" retorted Ketura. "Bellum stuck a sword right through it. I can't move it at all."

Out of the water flew a bottle filled with Red Potion. The bottle would have crashed, broken, and spilled all over the deck if Marlene hadn't caught it.

"Drink up," she opened the bottle and handed it to Ketura, who drained it in one gulp. Her hand stopped bleeding, and that was all that happened.

A barrel labeled FOOD flew up next; Marlene caught it and set it down. Following it were some pillows, blankets, a lantern, wooden boxes tagged MARLENE'S PRIVATE STUFF I and MARLENE'S PRIVATE STUFF II, and a miraculously dry letter titled APOLOGY TO KETURA.

"You've got mail," said Marlene. Ketura took the letter, opened it, and saw that it consisted of three simple sentences. She read the first two, but stopped a third of the way through the last sentence.

_I'm sorry. For everything. I love you._

Five seconds later, the letter was crumpled up and smashed with Ketura's foot.

"I wish he would say it to my face," muttered Ketura. She went back into the bridge to fire up the coal oven, and the boat rocked a little. Immediately after, she heard another familiar voice speaking to Marlene:

"Where did you find this boat?" asked Ganondorf.

"The captain saw me and sailed up." Marlene replied.

"Wha - why is my letter . . . ."

"I forgot to mention: Ketura's piloting the ship. Bellum stabbed her in the hand, and she somehow escaped."

"Is Nathan with her?"

"No. I don't know what's going on with them."

"Where is she now?"

"In the bridge."

Ketura stopped listening, picked up the shovel used to shovel coal into the oven, and barricaded the door with it. She sat down at the steering wheel and made the boat go on.

--

Three hours later, someone knocked on the door.

"Ketura? I know you're avoiding me, and I want to know why. What have I done to deserve being treated like this?"

_Nothing, _she thought sadly. _I just want some time alone._

"You know that if I want in, I'll get in," threatened Ganondorf. "Talk to me."

"Go away." Ketura finally snapped.

"Oh. If this is about your father, still -"

"No it isn't. Just shut up and go away."

"What happened, did Bellum kill Nathan -"

The thought of it made Ketura wince. She got up, removed the shovel from the door, and opened it to face Ganondorf.

"Nathan is still on Bellum's ship. I can't stand being separated from him or my children, and I really want some time alone." she said before shutting the door again and barricading it. A minute or two, a conversation started up between him and Marlene:

"My brand of cruelty is nothing compared to her. We haven't seen each other in ten months, and she doesn't even want to talk to me."

"Ganondorf, she's going through a hard time right now. I felt the same way she's feeling right now when I ran away from home and was separated from my sister, my very best friend. You cannot imagine the pain that a person goes through when they forcibly remove themselves from the life of someone they love."

"DON'T TALK TO ME ABOUT THIS!" shouted Ganondorf; Ketura jumped. "After the flood, I left Ketura because I blamed myself for her problems. Marlene, when you ran off, you had been with your family your whole life, and you were just afraid of the change to a more solitary lifestyle. Well, until ten years ago, my life has been nothing but solitary. It's hard to do what we did, but it is even harder to have to go back to being lonely!"

"Calm down, please," said Marlene.

"And just what would possess that woman to escape from Bellum and leave her husband on that hellhole of a ship?"

"I don't know, but I bet she will turn this boat around and head straight for the _Ghost_ if you demand answers."

The conversation continued, yet Ketura dozed off and was unable to listen much longer.

--

"In all seriousness, I don't know what Ketura is planning. At this point, I believe it's simply a matter of putting as much water as possible between her and Bellum. Perhaps . . . Nathan is being used as bait so Bellum can find her again."

"Like he tried to do with us!" realized Ganondorf. He looked up at the night sky and observed four stars in the formation of a perfect square around the moon. Below the moon, seven stars formed a ring around three more stars aligned perfectly.

"A calamity is on the way," he deduced. "The heavens sense it. The moon will be of some importance to it all . . . something in four . . . time will pass in a group of seven, then of three."

"Seven years and three days!" exclaimed Marlene. "Do you think that . . . that is when . . . ?"

"I didn't know you knew anything about astrology."

"Well, back before he went psycho, Bellum and I did study astronomy, astrology, and the like."

"Do you know what those four stars around the moon mean?"

"I don't know . . . . Maybe - no. Perhaps - impossible. Aha! Termina! . . . I think."

"So in seven years and three days, something will happen to Termina?"

"Not just there, but everywhere!" corrected Marlene. "We have to keep going west."


	11. Ten

**TEN**

The Cobble Kingdom lay in ruins before Bellum's feet. Only four pyramids remained standing, and they still stood because of some obscure architectural feat that made them virtually indestructable.

Bellum stood in the demolished town square and watched as his knights through the bodies of the slain into a burning pyre, the whole while he thought of how to find those two families that had escaped after giving the king and three knights proper burials.

"Sir, I found the information you requested from me earlier." A knight startled Bellum, who jumped slightly and then turned around. Two red knights had grabbed Nathan by an arm and brought him before Bellum.

"I should have known," chuckled Bellum. "What a loving husband, making sure your wife escapes while you stay behind and suffer. I'm so sorry I threatened to kill her."

Nathan said nothing; he stared intensely at Bellum.

"I shall not kill you. After all, everybody only has -" he looked up at the night sky and took note of the stars around the moon. "Three years and seven days. No wait; seven years and three days to live. Scary thought, isn't it?"

"I hate you." Nathan finally said.

"How amazing it is, the power those three simple words would have if I were not accustomed to hearing them my whole life. Did you ever learn just why I developed a hatred for the human race?

"I was always different as a child. While everyone else my age frolicked in the sunlight and the great outdoors, I stayed inside and read my books. They all made fun of me because of it. However, I did learn from what I read. I learned that it was highly unlikely for the goddesses of the Divine Trinity to exist, and if they did, they did not care about us. As I grew older, I was attacked for my religious convictions - or should I say, lack thereof. My own father was a drunk and he used all our money to buy beer. My mother tried to hide money from him so we would have something to live on, but he found out and had her arrested for robbery. She never got out of prison. My mother was the only good person I ever knew!

"My faith in humanity was restored oh so slightly after meeting Marlene. But she was not completely noble; she ran away from home to escape an arranged marraige, and in the process broke her family's heart. The two of us pursued scientific studies together, and that is when I discovered life force and hydramorte.

"Marlene was horrified by the power of hydramorte, especially after mistaking some for water and accidentally drinking it. She saw no practical use for it, but I saw its destructive capabilities. At the time, Hyrule was on the brink of war with Holodrum, and I presented hydramorte to Princess Zelda, who was also rendered aghast. She told me to stop conducting research, saying that the substance was an abomination to Nayru.

"I witnessed Zelda's cruelty towards her people and tried to kill her with hydramorte. I was discovered and banished from Hyrule.

"All my life, I noted the behavior of people around me. People are fearful of what is different from the norm. People are selfish. People are basically evil. They are the earth's own brand of hydramorte!"

"You're a human too," Nathan pointed out.

"I know. As soon as I am done killing alll other humans, I will kill myself." Bellum swallowed and took another look at the pyre. "Everyone to the ship!" he called. "Drop him," he said to the knights holding Nathan.

The phantom knights plopped Nathan onto the ground. He landed on all fours, his head down.

"Look at me," ordered Bellum.

Nathan kept his head down.

"Look. At. Me."

Nothing.

Swiftly, Bellum kicked Nathan's head.

Nathan recoiled into a fetal position on the ground, his face twisted in pain.

"This is part of your punishment for letting Ketura escape. Now, you'll have to take her place and kill alongside me."

"You have nothing to threaten me with . . . ." groaned Nathan.

"True," conceded Bellum before delivering a swift kick to the gut. Nathan flinched and curled up some more. "I'll just kick you around a bit and leave you to die."

A few minutes of kicking later, Bellum's foot ached some, and Nathan lay unconscious with many bruises and a nosebleed.

"Goodbye, Nathan."

--

The starry night sky greeted Nathan when he came around. He patted the ground to make sure it was still there, and slowly lifted himself to his knees. The _Ghost_ was long gone, and smoke still rose from the town square.

He staggered to his feet and scanned the rubble for a piece of material large enough to float and hold him . . . or a boat. He discovered the top of one building still in the shape of a pyramid, wide enough to hold him. He dragged it to the shoreline and pushed it into the dark water. Sadly, the makeshift boat sank in toe water.

Nathan cursed as he raised his hands to his forehead and took a few steps back. How he wished he could swim!

_Maybe I should just get some sleep and try again tomorrow,_ he thought sadly. Before he could try to go to sleep, he saw something flying through the sky towards him. When the something drew nearer, he could barely make out its shape in the dark.

"A mask?" questioned Nathan aloud.

**_"Not just any mask,"_** a low, ethereal voice came from nowhere. **_"I have powers that not even the gods have. Whoever wears me will accomplish whatever they wish to, such as destroying an enemy . . . ."_**

"So, if I put you on, I can find Bellum and kill him?" asked Nathan; he felt silly, talking to a floating mask.

The mask floated down to make eye contact with Nathan.**_ "If that is what you want, I shall help you achieve it."_**

"This doesn't feel right. I've witnessed first hand what happens when power goes wrong, and I'm scared -"

**_"Do you want to eradicate your enemies or not?!? Put me on!"_**

Nathan took a deep breath, reached out, took the mask, and put it on.

--

Even though the mask had no visible eyeholes, Nathan could still see clearly. He was planning on using his new, mysterious power to cross the ocean and find Bellum.

He went backwards again, then sprinted for the water. About halfway there, however, he stopped violently. His faced jerked and hit the mask. Then, he felt his feet rising off the ground. He was gaining a small amount of altitude as he was being lifted by the mask.

A pain equivalent to that of burning spread all over his face down to the rest of his body. Nathan felt himself wriggling in the air like a marionette with a crazy puppet-master. When what seemed like hours passed, the burning stopped, and so did his world.

--

**_"IN SEVEN YEARS AND THREE DAYS, I SHALL CONSUME . . . CONSUME ALL . . . ."_**


	12. Confessions of an Apologetic Author

I am posting this because I've gotten messages in the form of reviews concerning the fact that I haven't updated this story in a very long time. The truth is, life happened. I have been very busy with school and various other projects, so this story has been put on the backburner. It pains me to say that I will not be able to finish this story. If you are truly heartbroken by this, you may say so in a review. If you are heartbroken, say so in a review, and want to know what happens, say so in the review, and I will send you a synopsis of how the story was intended to end via email or private message.

Once again, I apologize.


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